The Huskies’ most anticipated non-conference matchup will be in downtown Hartford, not on campus.
UConn women’s basketball’s much-anticipated Dec. 21 matchup with the USC Trojans will be played at the XL Center, not Gampel Pavilion. The school revealed the venue in a release that announced the date of the Huskies’ trip to South Carolina on Wednesday. It’s the first home contest with a location at the moment.
While hosting the game on campus would make for a better atmosphere, the XL Center seats 5,000 more than Gampel Pavilion, allowing for more fans (and with it, ticket sales) for what will be one of the most exciting non-conference matchups in years.
The two schools just faced off in the 2024 Elite Eight, where 3-seed UConn took down top-seeded USC 80-73 to return to the Final Four. While both teams will look different — the Huskies should have a lot of players back from injury along with a strong group of newcomers while the Trojans landed a few top transfers alongside the nation’s No. 1 freshman class — the stars remain the same.
Paige Bueckers is back for her final season at UConn while USC’s JuJu Watkins will be in her second year after a standout freshman campaign. In the preseason polls, the Huskies and Trojans should be in the top three behind defending national champions South Carolina.